Being diagnosed with heart disease scares patients and leaves them with images of being rushed to the hospital following a heart attack or undergoing surgery to repair blockages. Other than taking medications prescribed by a cardiac specialist, patients may feel helpless in their own recovery. On the contrary, there are steps cardiac patients can take to reverse heart disease with the following lifestyle changes.

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Steps

1

Embark on an exercise regimen. You can improve heart health with exercise, and 30 minutes per day is a solid start to a routine. Whatever exercise you enjoy can either be done all at once or broken up into increments throughout the day, eventually working up to an optimal 60 minutes.

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2

Eliminate cigarettes. Smoking causes damage to your heart and circulatory systems, which will attribute to and then accelerate heart disease. If you quit your smoking habit, you will prevent the progression of heart disease and aid in reversing the damage already inflicted.

3

Improve your diet. Eating foods such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes and eliminating foods high in saturated fat provides your body with the nourishment it needs while reducing plaque buildup in your arteries. While a change in diet works to reverse heart disease, your overall health benefits as well from adding healthy food choices.

4

Reduce stress. Excessive stress causes elevated blood pressure resulting in a faster heartbeat, which means that your heart is working harder than normal. Find out what activities relax you, which may include yoga, playing or listening to music, painting or writing, and infuse them into your daily routine to keep you calm.

5

Lose weight. Obesity inflicts unnecessary strain on the heart muscle, in addition to contributing to diabetes and circulatory problems, all of which contribute to heart disease. By losing weight, you can reverse heart disease by lessening the stress on your heart and preventing it from overworking.

6

Lower your cholesterol. High LDL cholesterol levels increase your risk of a heart attack because the bad cholesterol hinders arterial blood flow and raised the likelihood of a blood clot. By combining a change in diet, an increase in exercise and watching your weight, you can lower LDL cholesterol and improve heart health.

7

Involve friends and family. The chances of you succeeding in reversing heart disease greatly increase when you incorporate your friends and family as a support system. They can help keep you accountable to the lifestyle changes you are trying to implement as well as team up with you in your efforts to lose weight, exercise more or quit smoking.

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Remember that when you implement lifestyle changes that reverse heart disease, you aren't losing much by giving up certain habits; rather, you gain a healthier perspective that may help you to live a longer life.